Tag Archives: TechTrek

It’s Exciting Times for Tech Trek

It’s Exciting Times for Tech Trek By Marlys Huez

On Sunday, March 3, the time arrived to meet the vibrant young women who have applied to represent our branch at Tech Trek Camp.

After diligent work by Gloria Yost and Kathleen Deaver with the cooperation and assistance of teachers at 24 middle schools, eight applications were completed and successfully loaded into the CampDoc system.  The committee was able to use the conference room at Bel Air Market on Arden Way as a meeting place and interview location.  The girls, all seventh graders, arrived for their interview with eager parents and some with other family members accompanying them.

Selection to attend camp at UC Davis, or even to attend a virtual camp, can be an opportunity that changes a young woman’s life.  It can ignite an existing spark of interest in STEM, feed strong interests in a field of study, or simply create an insatiable desire to attend college.

The committee’s task was to evaluate the students’ enthusiasm for STEM fields, the availability of opportunities to the student, and evidence of curiosity and potential.  Along with teacher evaluations and essays submitted by the girls, the committee then met to select the six applicants who would have the opportunity to attend the residential camp and the two who would be offered the virtual camp.  Working together, Marlys Huez, Tech Trek coordinator, with committee members Monique Stovall and Mary Miller, reached consensus on the girls who would attend.  The letters have gone out to the campers, the camp directors have been notified and we eagerly look forward to the next steps of Tech Trek.  We encourage anyone with an interest in this important project to join the 2024 committee and volunteer to help with camp activities in person or virtually in July.

Speech Trek and Tech Trek News

17th Annual Speech Trek Contest Celebrates Its Winner By Ann Arneill

On Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024, the Speech Trek Committee held its Speech Trek contest via Zoom, with great success.  An audience listened to three high school students from three Elk Grove Unified School District high schools speak on the topic: If an educated population is essential to a nation’s prosperity, then how can we ensure a robust public school curriculum that is accessible to all and teaches historically accurate information?  In these times when states and school boards are censoring the content of school curriculum, this topic is very timely.

First-place winner was Alyssa Wong, from Laguna Creek High School, receiving $500.  Second-place winner, Nandi Moyo from Cosumnes High School, received $300.  The third-place winner was Maryluz Sandig from Laguna Creek High School, who received $100.

The Sacramento Branch’s winning speaker is entered in the AAUW CA Speech Trek Semi-finals.   If Alyssa Wong makes it to into the top three, she will be invited to compete in the finals for $1,500.  She will also present her speech at the May branch meeting.

Virginia Kidd, Ph.D., communications professor emeritus at CSUS, and our very own members Liz Jordan and Linda Patterson judged the event.  AAUW member Kathleen Deaver served as timekeeper for the contest.  Thanks to branch member Karen Burley for technical assistance.

The Speech Trek Committee would like to expand its membership.  Working on Speech Trek is very gratifying.  You are helping high school students develop a skill that is no longer taught in public high schools. Public speaking will help them in their future schooling and their careers. Committee members can choose from a variety of tasks with varying degrees of responsibility.  Please consider volunteering for this committee.  Contact Shari Beck at gsbeck@surewest.net or Ann Arneill at ann_arneill@comcast.net.

TECH TREK has TREKERS! By Marlys Huez

The Tech Trek Committee is making great progress in preparing to send campers from our branch to the July 14-20 Tech Trek Camp at UC Davis.

Thanks to the diligent work of our wonderful Tech Trek committee recruiters, Gloria Yost and Kathleen Deaver, the applications for the July UC Davis camp are starting to arrive.  Gloria and Kathleen have done a great job with contacting principals/counselors and teachers, and working with parents to produce completed applications for another quality class of young women with interests in STEM fields.

We are becoming expert with the application and tracking software, CampDoc.  Chair Marlys Huez has proactively worked with the state and camp coordinators to keep our process and data responsibilities moving forward. Also, Lori Franz and Mary Miller co-chairs from last year, have happily rejoined the Tech Trek Committee along with Monique Stovall and Joyce Humphrey.  We are excited to be able to meet the applicants soon.

For those members who would like some limited, but very fun, interaction with the camps and campers, we have been asked to recruit volunteers, including a dorm mom, to help out during the Davis camp week.  Volunteers for a day are also welcome!  Please consider!

Programs: Looking Forward, Looking Back

Programs: Looking Forward, Looking Back By Hedda Smithson

Sacramento Branch of AAUW Presents

Episode Four of “The Rights Stuff”: The Right to Higher Education

Lights, Camera, Action!!

Saturday, December 9, 2023 11 AM

North Ridge Country Club, 7600 Madison Avenue

 AAUW Sacramento was founded in 1920. Some of us helped celebrate our 100th birthday on Feb. 29, 2020. One of the first projects these early members started was a scholarship program.

For our December gathering we will invite our current scholarship recipients — Elizabeth, Erin, Nichole, Wahida and Nataliia  to join us for lunch at the lovely North Ridge Country Club.

A choice of entrees will be offered and an opportunity to “take a future grad to lunch” by helping to pay for the lunches of our scholarship guests. There may be a chance to do other giving as well.

More information and how to RSVP for this event will be provided in an upcoming eBlast.

Recaps: September and October of the Rights Stuff

The first two episodes of “Lights, Camera, Action”  are “in the can”. Both were SRO (standing room only!!). Running out of chairs is a good thing? Here are the highlights:

September 23 at the Arcade Library on Marconi Avenue

  • Members approved the budget for the 2023-24 membership year as presented in the September issue of Capital Ideas.
  • Seven Tech Trek campers shared stories of blood draws, food science, and playing with lights and sound at the Mondavi Center in Davis. Each received a Tech Trek bear.
  • Two National Conference of College Women Student Leaders participants told us what they had learned during three days of intense workshops and networking.
  • We learned how to be Membership Ambassadors and earn a star!!
  • New members include Susan Cox, Joyce Humphrey, Pam Harder, Kim McDaniel, Sasha Mowrey, Joy Allender and Tom Smithson. Be sure to watch for and welcome each to future events.
  • We were invited to join a group tour at the Sojourner Truth Museum on Oct. 7 for an African Marketplace, featuring live music, food, and shopping opportunities.

October 14 at the Sacramento Fine Arts Center on Gibbons Drive

  • Members from Sacramento and Citrus Heights/American River Branches met for more than a month to put together this program.
  • Representatives from Planned Parenthood Mar Monte spoke to us briefly about their local focus.
  • We listened to stories from The Abortion Chronicles and discussed what we heard.
  • We heard how medical students and doctors have had to make choices about their futures.
  • We learned about maternal care deserts both before and after the Dobbs Decision.
  • Each participant was given a packet full of information, including two pages of actions that each of us could take.
  • Our lesson in government included how amendments become part of the US Constitution and what we can do to have the Equal Right Amendment published.

President’s Message

President’s Message By Nancy McCabe

As I write this, summer is hanging on, and we are anxious for cooler weather and fall
activities. Apple Hill, fall sports and sweaters are looking pretty good.

By now, our first monthly meeting is in the record books and we are looking forward to our Oct. 14 event. I hope to see you attending our events as the Smith and Smithson team is planning our second Lights, Camera, Action program. This will be our best program season in a while as they are creativity personified!

On another note, I would like to introduce you to pages 1-8 in the front of our directory. I think most of us use the directory only to locate other members, but we are overlooking some really good information. As we all are being encouraged to recruit friends and family to join our branch, page 1 describes who we are and what we stand for. Page 2 is the membership cost and board meeting schedule. Page 3 describes the standing programs that are an asset to the community. This is what I talk about when I am sharing what I am most proud of. (I know, don’t end a sentence with a preposition!) The following pages are interest groups, branch programs and branch leaders.

As an FYI, please add Marissa Floyd as the Public Policy chairperson. We are so
pleased that she has agreed to take this on to keep us informed about legislation.
Our voting board, those who attend board meetings, consists of the four elected
and five appointed members. Thus, meeting attendance is narrowed down to
attract leaders who are meeting-adverse. Keep this in mind when you are asked
to help out!

See you in October!

P.S. Also note our Tech Trek co-chairs for 2023-24 are Marlys Huez and Joyce Humphrey. At the Sept. 23rd kickoff we were introduced to our summer 2023 Tech Trek campers.

September Kickoff

Sacramento Branch of AAUW Presents (By Hedda Smithson)

Episode One of “The Rights Stuff”:
                               The Right to Equal Opportunity

                             >>> Lights, Camera, Action!! <<<

Saturday, September 23, 10 AM in the Arcade Library, 2443 Marconi Ave

We begin our program year with a double feature: our camera focuses on two very important programs that empower women and girls: National Conference of College Women Student Leaders (NCCWSL) and Tech Trek. Each participant will be invited to meet with you to share her experiences.

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – poet Muriel Strode.

The most recent NCCWSL conference was held May 31 to June 3 at the University of Maryland, College Park. Details of the three days of leadership training, inspiration and networking agenda are found at aauw.org. Sacramento Branch sponsored Marissa Floyd and Paola Mendez. Marissa majored in Child Development and was a behavior analyst at a local school district. Paola is a political science journalism major.

Tech Trek was created in 1988 by Marie Wolbach at Stanford. The STEM-oriented camps (virtual and in person) are designed for girls ready to enter 8th grade. Science teachers from Will C Wood (Eli) and W. E. Mitchell (Corinna and Jonathan) nominated students to be considered by our Tech Trek committee. Students wrote essays and were interviewed by committee members as a part of the selection process. Phyllis and Melena (Will C. Wood) and Isabella, Chelsea, Victoria, and Avery (W.E. Mitchell) attended the camp at UC Davis last July while Mia, Jaila, and Sana attended a virtual camp. Each camper experienced a full week of exciting workshops, sessions and evening events. Kathleen Deaver, Lori Franz, Hedda Smithson, and Gloria Yost visited to see what was going on. Long time supporter of Tech Trek, Jo Reiken, was there as our guide. The highlight was watching the solar powered cars, designed and built by the students, compete. Tech Trek is but one program offered through aauw-ca .

The Lights and Camera are focused on NCCWLS and Tech Trek. Now it’s time for Action: interact with our guests, volunteer to help with a committee, and/or donate to the branch for one or both of these programs. Or write your own role.

Closing credits and details:

This article represents your TICKET! Take advantage of this opportunity to see AAUW Sacramento in action. Greet old friends and make new ones. Bring a relative, neighbor and/or friend. This event is open to the public. Let’s spread the word!!

 

Tech Trek is Getting Ready for Blast Off!

Tech Trek is getting ready for blast off! By Lori Franz

Can you believe it??  It is less than two months until the UC Davis Tech Trek camp welcomes 90 campers.   We are so proud that our branch has recruited and will send six campers.  We were delighted to receive a slot for one of our alternates as we initially were allocated only five slots.  The campers have completed their applications and have just received an opportunity to sign up for one of five exciting core classes which will run the week of their camp.   Here are the descriptions of each focus.  Wouldn’t it be fun to have the opportunity these girls will have??

ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY:  Examine the structures of various organ systems through dissection.  Look at lungs, hearts, bones and eyes!   Learn how your body works by using equipment to measure blood pressure, pulse, oxygen levels and respiratory volumes.  We will gather data, build a model lung, and more!  (Warning: Not for the faint of heart. Dissection of animal organs is included each day.)

ASTRONOMY & SPACE: We’ll spend the week exploring the frontiers of aerospace. We will delve into astronomy, space and NASA career-related topics. We’ll learn how NASA studies Earth, including its climate, our sun, and our solar system and beyond.  You’ll discover many ways to be a part of a very large international team whose goal is to better our life on Earth and enable future exploration to reach new heights beyond our planet.

HIGH ENERGY ENGINEERING:  Find out about the vast and growing career field of engineering. Using a STEM approach, we will engage in hands-on team projects while exploring topics like environmental, structural and electrical engineering. We will investigate a diverse set of real problems and use the engineering design process to build prototypes to try to solve them! Join us in building a desalination device and racing solar cars. We will focus on renewable energy and celebrate with a s’more party using our homemade solar cookers!

STORYTELLING WITH DATA:  Data is more than just a bunch of spreadsheets. We collect data for a reason: Data is power — the power for good, the power to change, the power to protect.  In this class we will use the same methods that scientists at companies, like Google and Meta, and in government use to make the world better with data. Campers will learn how to collect and analyze data as well as use infographics and other visual techniques.  You’ll put your new skills to work to create your own powerful visual stories on topics you choose, proving that data is POWER!

WEARABLE TECH:  What does this mean to you? Movies show us versions where the heroine has glasses that can see through walls or rocket shoes that let a person fly. Although these are extreme versions of wearable tech, they are not far off from what is possible; shoes with GPS and glasses that are wearable computers already exist.  Find out more about this growing industry. Through creative expression, you will learn how to design, code and sew wearable pieces with functional technology. By the end of the week, you will each engineer a drawstring bag that can solve an everyday problem.

Our Tech Trek committee continues to plan a meet-up with our campers and will make sure everything goes smoothly.   We have been busy making sure all the vaccinations and paperwork is complete.

In addition, we are excited that our branch is also sending three girls to the virtual Tech Trek camp that allows girls who prefer to be at home to learn from there and also helps us provide STEM activities for those who can’t go to the residential camp because of the limited space.

Tech Trek News

It’s Exciting times for Tech Trek! By Mary C. Miller and Lori Franz

The time to meet the vibrant young women who applied to represent our branch at Tech Trek Camp arrived on Saturday, March 18.

After diligent work by Gloria Yost and Kathleen Deaver, with the cooperation and assistance of teachers and principals at two middle schools, 10 applications were completed and successfully loaded into the new Campdoc system. Thanks to the assistance of Angela Scarlett, the committee was able to use the Dharma Center as a meeting place and interview location.  The girls, all seventh graders, arrived for their interview with eager parents accompanying them.

Selection to attend camp at UC Davis, or even to attend a virtual camp, is an opportunity that can change a young woman’s life.  It can ignite an existing spark of interest in STEM, feed strong interests in a field of study, or simply create an insatiable desire to attend college.

The committee’s task was to evaluate the students’ enthusiasm for STEM fields, the availability of opportunities to the student, and the evidence of curiosity and potential. Along with teacher evaluations and the essays the girls submitted, the committee then met to select the five applicants who would have the opportunity attend the residential camp and the five who would be offered the virtual camp.  Working together and assisted by committee member Monique Stovall, consensus was reached.  The letters are ready to go out to the girls, the camp directors have been notified and we eagerly look forward to the next steps of Tech Trek.

We encourage anyone with an interest in this important project to join the 2024 committee.

Tech Trek/Gov Trek

Tech Trek Has Trekers!! By Lori Franz

Thanks to the diligent work of our wonderful Tech Trek committee recruiters, Gloria Yost and Kathleen Deaver, the applications for the July UC-Davis camp are starting to arrive.  Gloria and Kathleen have done a great job with contacting principals and teachers, and working with parents to produce completed applications for another quality class of young women with interests in STEM fields.

We have all had to learn the new application and tracking software, CampDoc, and adapt as we have the fun of being first-time users of a newly developed system. Chair Mary Miller has diligently interacted with the state coordinators to keep our process and data responsibilities moving forward.  We are excited to be able to meet the applicants soon.

For those members who would like some limited, but very fun, interaction with the camps and campers, we have been asked to recruit some volunteers to help out during the Davis camp week. Please consider!!

Gov Trek By Charmen Goehring

Gov Trek is AAUW CA’s newest state project. We aim to encourage high school junior and senior girls to consider running for office and/or working on campaigns in the future. This program has been executed over five sessions on Zoom, running every other Saturday. All previous sessions were recorded and can be found on the AAUW CA website.

Please see below for the link to the Gov Trek Finale and Campaign Competition, and attend if you are interested to see what Gov Trek was about.  Times are PST for those of you out of state!!

SESSION 5: Gov Trek Finale & Campaign Competition 3/25 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM 

Join us for an exciting morning to include video opening remarks from Senator Toni G. Atkins and eight campaign teams who have been selected to participate in the state finals, with live judging and awards. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_RRG-IJI5QUCHyojxaFQe-g

Tech Trek is Trekking Along! 

Tech Trek is Trekking along!  By Mary Miller and Lori Franz

 Excitement is building for Tech Trek 2023 and we are delighted to see our chapter participating again.  The Tech Trek committee has begun the process of promoting the program and recruiting residential and virtual campers for this summer.  Our target schools have been notified and provided materials. The principals and key teachers are eager to help us identify and recruit students.  Funding for us to recruit up to 7 on-campus and 3 virtual campers has been approved by the board. However, we have learned that there are 148 more requests for camper spots than will be available at the 2023 Davis and Sonoma camps. That means that every Northern California branch planning to send girls to those camps most likely would be limited to sending a maximum of three campers to residential Tech Trek in 2023.  We are disappointed, but remain hopeful that in the final allocation we will receive more slots.

Our campers will be attending the UC Davis camp to be held July 9-15.  The Davis camp will have a variety of on-campus field trips and experiences, including visits to the nationally known School of Veterinary Medicine. Also important, campers will live in the residence halls and have a great campus experience, which can be life changing for girls from disadvantaged situations.   Our chapter is part of the AAUW Tech Trek mission in California that in 2022 received over 1,500 nominations from more than 400 teachers at nearly 350 schools, resulting in over 1,000 applications from 94 branches narrowed down to nearly 750 selected and alternate campers.  We can all be proud of the opportunities this AAUW program creates for future women scientists, engineers, technologists and mathematicians.

Tech Trek News

Tech Trek News By Mary C. Miller and Lori Franz

The Tech Trek committee is busy making plans to recruit students for the 2023 camp at UC Davis.

Plenty of new opportunities and changes have occurred at the state and camp levels.  We have attended zoom planning and orientation sessions and are managing the constant flow of communications. Committee members Gloria Yost and Kathleen Deaver have made initial contacts with two of our target schools as we await new brochures and materials from the state level. In short, we are ready to begin the recruitment process as soon as the resources are received.

A new look and feel for the 2023 camp season has already been unveiled, focusing on the “STEMpowerment” of all those who participate. We will be excited to send students for Tech Trek’s 25th year, and we thank our members for their long-term commitment.  We know participation has created many opportunities and dreams for the future for the girls representing our branch.

After camp this year, recent participants were invited to create a new program logo. McKenna Rose, a 2022 camper representing the Five Cities-Pismo Beach branch, submitted the winning concept. What a nice symbol to describe our role in empowering young women interested in the STEM fields!  (See the new logo below.)

Our branch has traditionally selected and sent six girls to the UC Davis camp. Although we would have liked to offer the opportunity to more of our wonderful applicants over the years, the capacity of the camp was limited. This year, we were invited to request additional slots; we have requested seven slots with the option to also send up to four girls to a “virtual” camp. Although the costs have increased from $900 to $1,000 per camper, along with $500 per “virtual camper”, our budget is sufficiently funded at this time.

Thanks to our board, this ambitious plan has been approved. We appreciate the past and future support of our members that allows us to resume participation in such a positive way.